By TesfaNews,
Sudanese football club Al-Murqani recently disclosed that it is in the process of transferring Adulis club player Eritrean Samyuma Alexander Walu with US$15,000.
Manager of the club, Mr. Naznet Yared, confirmed that his club is finalizing the remaining requirements to expedite the transfer.
Samyuma Alexander, the perfect deliverer, has displayed his full playing potential from any given position.
He caught the attention of Coach Yared during last year’s League of Eritrea matches. He scored his side’s 15 goals and delivered more than a dozen ready-to-the-net passes to his teammates.
With his imposing presence and steadfastness, Club Adulis is now on top of the League’s rankings.
If successful, Alexander would be the second Eritrean professional football player after the great Yohannes Zemichael who died in 1993 while playing for a Sudanese club Al-Hilal.
On the occasion of the 2007 CAF’s Golden Jubilee celebration in Asmara, the Eritrean National Football Federation crowned Yohannes Zemichael as the best Eritrean player of the past fifty years.
Another Eritrean professional player, Henok Goitom, who was playing for the Spanish club of La Liga, is now playing with a hometown club AIK Football in Sweden.
Despite recent setbacks, Eritrea’s pre and post-independence football history was remarkable and decorated with a number of enviable players.
Under the Ethiopian colonization, Eritrean players defied all the political barriers to prove their superiority. For instance, Ethiopia’s sole historic victory of the 3rd African National Cup in 1962 was spearheaded by nine Eritrean players out of the 11. After half a century, the victory still stands momentously and remains Ethiopia’s only African Cup Trophy.
When Ethiopia, again, won the East and Central Africa competition in 1987, Eritreans like Negash Teklit and Amanuel Iyasu was the back bone of the national team.
In mid 90s, Eritrean kids made headline stories in Europe by winning every trophy and gold medals available at the Gothia, Dana and Norway Cup tournaments for three successive years. Football fans and sport analysts who have a decent grip on scouting and spotting young football prospects have called young Filmon Tsegay from Maytemenai team as a wonder boy with bright future ahead of him. The then many European and Brazilian players whom he played against are now part of big European clubs and national teams.
Eritrea needs to give the utmost priority for the revival and development of football in the country as it does the same for Cycling and Athletics at which they are number one on the continent.
Eritreans were asking, what went wrong with football then? They wonder if it was from luck of infrastructure, training, nutrition, follow up, weakness within the sport federation itself or a combination of all? Whatever the reason may be, they would love to see the restoration of the old glory just like what their brothers and sisters does in cycling and athletics.
(L- R standing): Luciano Vassalo (captain), Awad Mohammed, Tesfaye GebreMedhin, Berhe Goytom, Asmelash Berhe, Kiflom Araya, Gashe Tilahun (trainer);
(L- R sitting): Girma Zeleke, Gila-Michael T. Mariam, Italo Vassalo, Getachew Wolde, Mengistu Worku.
